Coupling means for releasably suspending a mass



v a. A. 'WEARHA'M, comma MEANS FOR mummy SUSPENYDING Amss.APPLICATION.HLZEDIFEBQ'ID. 192.l,

I I. I

' Patented June 28-, 1921-.

UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

GORDON AUGUSTUS WEARHAM, or LoN'noN, ENGLAND.

COUPLING MEANS FOR RELEASlALBLY SUSPENDING- A MASS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented e 28 Application filedFebruary 10, 1921. Serial No. 443,952.

T 0 all whom it may concern 7 Be it known that I, GORDON AUeUsrUsVVEARHAM, a subject of the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britainand he land, and residing at Myrtle Lodge, 159 Lewisham road, London, S.E. 13, England, have invented new; and useful Improvements in orRelating to Coupling Means for Beleasably Suspending aMass, (for which Ihave filed application in England, Sept. 26,

' 1919, No. 23,67 8,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object the rapid and easy release of asuspended mass with a minimum expenditure of force, such force beingindependent of the weight to be re: leased, or proportional to only avery small fraction thereof, and relates to apparatus in which thesuspension hook is pivoted in a i bent or projection is frame or housingin such manner that a mass suspended therefrom tends to rock saidihookabout its pivotal axis to release said mass,

said hook being formed with a nose adapted to bear, when a massissuspended from it, against'the adja'centend of a detent, pivotallymounted onan arm. According to this invention the arm is pivoted in saidframe on an axis in line or nearly in line with the point of contactofthe hook and the detent and with the pivot of the detent while a to beengaged by a trigger lever, the arrangement'being such that whena massis suspended from the hook, the mouth of the latter is closed and thedirection of the thrust of the nose of the hook against, the

. natively,

detent coincides or nearly coincides withthe line joining the pivots ofthe detent and the arm, so that whatever the weight suspended, no stress'due thereto or only so small a stress as maygbe desired, is transmittedto the trigger lever. Means may be provided for automatically throwingthe pivot of the detent-or of the arm out of the aforesaid alinementwhen the bent of the detent is disengaged from the trigger-lever.Alterthesaid automatic means may be dispensed with if the pivots of thedetent and the arm be slightly out of line with the point of contact ofthe detent and: the nose of-the hook, and the parts so located that thesuspended weight tending to turn the hook tends also to movethe detentand the arm to permit it suspended mass; the said movement beingprevented by a trigger lever.

provided and adapted to turnso as to release the" Further, the extent towhich the two pivots and the point of contact between the l detent andthe nose of the hook are out of line may be regulated by making thetrigger adjustable in position, so'that as small a fractionas may be desiredof the force due to the weight to bereleased is transmitted to thetrigger.

One form of apparatus'constructed inaccordance with this invention willbe olel scribed with reference to the accompanying drawlngs of whichFigure'l 1s a sectional ele:

vation on the crooked line A A Fig. 2,a1id Fig. 2 1s a plan with theuppermost distance pieces and tie rods omitted;

A hook a from which the massto be re placed may be suspended, ispivotally mounted 011 a spindle b in a frame or =housing constituted bya pair of plates o 0 connected by distance pieces (Z and tie rods e. Thepivot of the hook at is so placed adacent the portion f thereof thatamass suspended from the'portion f tends' to rock the hook a about itspivot b to such aneX- tent as to releasesaich mass. Atits top,

the hook is formed withawnoseg adapted to bearagainst theadjacent end hof a detent 17' be engaged by the nose g of atrigger r pi'v otallymounted on a spindle s passing through the plates 0 0 and thetail of thesaid trigger?" is bifurcated as at t and engages peripheral grooves 10in the rod 4) of a piston w of a pneumaticcylinder 50 carried by saidplates 0 c, said piston 1.0 being pressed by a sprlng y against the endof the'cylmder 00 so as to prevent oscillation of: the trigger a" andconsequent premature release of the mass due tovibration, while for thesame purpose a stop pin a is disposed between theplates c 0 and abovethe detent j to prevent the latter from rising above its normalposition.

A spring 12 bears against apin' 13attached to thQ SlClIG plates 0cand'agairista pin 14 attached to the armmm, and consequently until thelatter is permitted to turn.

slightly from its normal. position this arm and the detent" fare turnedcounter clock wise by the force exerted by the nose 9 of the hook a onthe end it of the detent j, and so permit the hook a -to turn to releasethe suspended mass. V

The a'rmmam has lugs 11 which, when a massis being. suspended on thehook a are struck bythe suspension eye ofthe mass so as to move the armm m into the position shown in thedrawings. The said movement of thearmim m also causes the detent 'j to engage the nose 9 ofthe hook a andthe trigger r so that the parts of the device are automatically set inoperative position by the action of attaching the mass to the hook. Theside plates '00 are preferably formed as at 10 so as to prevent thesuspension eye of the mass from escaping from'the. hookIa 11 place of orin addition to the spring 12, the trigger 1" may be provided with aprojec tion 16 adapted to strike the .arm m' m or the detent 7', whenthe trigger 1" is operated" m from its normal' and so-move the arm mposition. i q

Alternatively, if the pivot 70 of the detent j be slightly below theposition shown in the drawings,.that-is to say, below the line throughthe'pivotn and the point of contact between the nose 9 and the end it ofthe:

detent; j, the pressure of thenose g on the end kwill tend to move thearm .m m so as to release the suspended mass.

The'invention enables 'a heavy mass to be released by a very light pullon the trigger and'is especially adapted for use on air craft for bombdropping. It will be obas a releasable coupling is not1limited to asuspended mass, but will also serve e. g. as a slip coupling for railwayvehicles and for-analogous purposes. I It is obvious that the triggerlever a" may be applied to the arm m m instead of to the detent j.

The parts may be disposed in other ways than that shown in the drawingswithout departing from the invention; for instance the arm m m'may bepivoted at a point on the side of the pivot of the detent 7' opposlte tothat on which is located the nose g of the hook on, the essentialfeatureof the invention being thatthepivots of the arm m m and of thedetent j, be in a'li-ne or nearly in a linewith the point of contactbetween the detent j and the hook at.

Having described myinvention, I declare that what I claim and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. .In apparatus-for releasably suspending amass, the combination with a frame or engaging position and on which thevious that the employment of the invention -.a mass,'the combinationwith housing, v suspended pivoted to, the housingsoas to adapted to holdthe detent in itshook engaging position.

2. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with atramefor housing, of a hook from which the mass'is suspended pivoted tothe housing so as to.

tend to turn to release the'mass, a detent engaging the said hookadapted to prevent such turning,"an arm pivoted to the frame, on whichthe detent is adapted to hold the detent in its hookengaging position,and means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent.

3. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination withatrame or housing of a hook from which the -mass is suspendedpivoted tothe housing so as to 1 tend to'turn to release the mass, a detentengaging thesaid hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted tothe frame, on which thedetent'is pivoted, the pivots of the detentand ofthe arm being approx imately in a line with-the ment of the detent andthe hook,a'trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-- engagethetrigger from the detent.

4; In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with aframe or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspended pivoted tothe housing .so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detentengaging the-said hook adapted to prevent 105 detent is pivoted, atrigger suchturning, an arm pivoted to theframe,

pivoted, a trigger point of engagemeans adaptedto disii adapted tov holdthe detent in its hookengaging position, means 'adaptedfto disengage thetrigger 'from thedetent, and means adapted-to :slightly turn the "armaboutits pivot engaged.

when the trigger is so dis-;'

.5. In apparatus for releasably suspending of a hook from which-the massis" tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the said hookadapted to prevent such turnin ,an arm pivoted to the frame, onwhichth'e detent'is pivoted, theJpivots of the detent and of the armbeing approx- -a frame or imately in a line with the point of engage Vment of the detent and adapted tohold the detent in its hook-engagingposition, means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent, andmeans the hook, a trigger Q adapted "to slightly turn the arm about its5 pivot when the trigger is so disengaged.

6.- In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combinationwith'a frame or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspendedpivoted to the housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, adetent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an armpivoted to the frame, on Which the detent is pivoted, a trigger adaptedto hold the detent in its hook-engaging position, and a projection onthe arm adapted to be engaged by the mass when the latter is beingattached to the hook, so as to move the arm into the position which itoccupies when the mass is retained by the hook.

7 In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with aframe or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspended pivoted tothe housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engagingthe said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to theframe, on which the detent is pivoted, the pivots of the detent and ofthe arm being approximately in a line with the point of engagement ofthe detent and the hook, a projection on the arm adapted to be engagedby the mass when the latter is being attached to the hook, so as to movethe arm into the position which it occupies when the mass is retained bythe hook, a trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-engagingposition, and means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent.

8. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with aframe or housing, of a hook from'which the mass is suspended pivoted tothe housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engagingthe said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to theframe, on which the detent is pivoted, the pivots of the detent and ofthe arm being approximately in a line with the point of engagement ofthe detent and the hook, a projection on the arm adapted to be engagedby the mass when the latter is being attached to the hook, so as to movethe arm into the.

position which it occupies when the mass is retained by the hook, atrigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-engaging position, meansadapted to disengage the trigger from the detent, and means adapted toslightly turn the arm about its pivot when the trigger is so disengaged.

In testimony whereof I have aiiixed my signature.

GORDON AUGUSTUS WEARHAM.

